Now I admit, I do not follow hockey as an avid fan by any stretch..im purely a football guy through and through, pro and college. I do however cheer for the pens and pirates to do well and I follow them at a moderate level. I dont profess to know everything about hockey but I do know a fair amount, more than the average joe... but anywho...

Given the city of Pittsburgh's ecomonic situation.. the fact that Pens and Pirates dont attract as much support as the Steelers do..and yes I know there are alot more games in baseball and hockey than in football so that figures into the equation too..

But the Steelers own Pittsburgh..the fans come out every week, and sell out heinz field for every game, preseason, regular, and post season. They/ We buy all the jerseys', hats, shirts, and basically all the Steelers merchandise they can come up with. The Steeler players have endorsements for everything from beef jerkey to barbeque sauce and virtually anything else. Even if the Pens and Buco's right the ship in the coming seasons and start to be competitve again, can the city really fully support 3 professional sports teams the way they used too. The Steelers will always own Pittsburgh in a way that fans show every day now so I just hope that in the future before its too late, that the pens and pirates can reap some more of that same support again.

Just a thought I had while listening to game night on espn radio this evening..

Your thoughts ?

Prosdo

01-20-2006, 01:06 AM

A lot of people around the Burgh still love the Pirates and Pens. I think the ownership for the Pirates have turned a lot of people off. Also another aspect to look as the Pirates got a completely new and gorgeous stadium not too long ago. I think the talk about them possibly leaving has ticked off fans then add the fact that they have a new stadium. .As for the Pens I think they can become a good team and when I went to the game I actually had a lot of fun. I was actually planning on going again. I'd hate to see either leave.

BlitzburghRockCity

01-20-2006, 01:14 AM

NO doubt girl, seeing either of those teams leave Pittsburgh would be a travesty..and I agree especially with the Pirates getting PNC park not too long ago, and just not being able to turn it around has turned alot of fans off.

Hence the Pens wanting a new arena and the apprehension of it now too. Going to hockey games is great, you have a blast, and the fans still love all the teams,I just hope it all works out so the city doesnt lose such a big part of what has helped make it great.

Prosdo

01-20-2006, 01:19 AM

Me too. You're right when you say the Steelers own Pittsburgh because it's true. They reign kings of Pittsburgh. Praying that the Pens get the slots license.

83-Steelers-43

01-20-2006, 09:21 AM

By no means do I claim to be an expert (far from it), but coming from a Penguin and Steeler season ticket holder, these are just my opinions.......Well, the Steelers ARE Pittsburgh. They always will be. Football will always come first in this city for a few reasons.

1) The Steelers are a spitting image of the people of this city, hard working and blue collar. Hockey will always be second or third in this city. Being a Canadian born sport is reason enough for some people to not bother picking up on it. Also, it's a hard sport to sell. Not many kids play hockey. It's damn expensive for starters.

2) The experience at Heinz is not even in the same ball park (excuse the pun) as PNC Park. While I agree PNC Park is the most beautiful ball park in MLB, the atmosphere as a whole is not that impressive. As for Mellon Arena, what is there to say? It's a dump. Plain and simple. Trying to walk around in that arena is a horrible experience. The experience overall is horrible. From the lack of places to eat, to the lack of beer choices, to the lack of places to sit down and eat (besides your seats) to the run down look it has night in and night out.

3) Football, is an all day event and it's only once a week. You wake up, you leave your house at 7:00 or 8:00, head down to Heinz, tailgate all morning, at 12:45 you head into Heinz and then after the game maybe you get some dinner.

4) Management. What is there to say exactly? As Pirate fans we have been screwed over for the last fifteen years basically. Between not being able to manage money and players it has been a complete nightmare for the fans of the Pirates. To tell you the truth, I was actually shocked to see as many fans at Pirate games. Faithful to say the least. As for the Penguins. Management in the past and present screwed this team over. This season is a perfect example of why Craig Patrick needs to go and Lemieux needs to retire.

5) Public Relations. For both the Penguins (with the exception of this season) and Pirates. is horrible in my opinion compared to the Steelers.

Do I feel we can support three major league teams? Yes. Bottomline though, you have to win. You can't go FIFTEEN years finishing under .500 and expect your ball park to sell out every night. Personally, I'm by no means asking for a World Series or even a playoff run, but playing solid baseball might make that $6.00 beer not hurt so much. You can't buy a ton of hockey players, bomb and expect fans to show up in an arena that is as old as the Roman ruins. I don't care how cheap you make the tickets, people want to see a team put forth the effort that they are getting paid to put forth. I remember at one point in time in this city when the Pirates were more popular than the Steelers and I remember seeing the Civic Arena (at the time) was packed with standing room only. The people in this city love their sports and are excellent fans, but you have to give them something to cheer for. Once again, I'm not talking about championship rings, I'm talking about solid teams. A show of effort and heart. I have not seen either from the Penguins or Pirates, from management to the players in the last five years at least.

Sorry if this was a little long.

SteelerDan43

01-20-2006, 09:56 AM

I think that the city wants to support all three teams... But people can only take loosing for so long. Remember last year when the Bucs were 30-30? It was the hottest ticket in town! People want to go to the games but they want to see at least a competitive product out there... ESPN rated PNC park as the nicest ball park in the country they commented that "Ray Kinsella was wrong. Baseball heaven isn't in Iowa. It's in Pittsburgh, along the banks of the Allegheny River." Here is the link... http://espn.go.com/page2/s/ballparks/pncpark.html
Look at ticket sales after the announcement of the All Star Game... They skyrocketed to get a shot at tickets! This shows people here want to see baseball. They just dont want to watch a 90 loss team every year... The same hold true for the Pens, look at ticket sales after we won the Crosby lottery, went threw the roof! I think the city wants to support both teams, its just alot harder to do with losers... :helmet:

Stlrs4Life

02-18-2006, 03:40 PM

Last 2 posts said it all.

SteelCityMan786

02-18-2006, 09:29 PM

I think this town would be able to. If the Penguins get good again and get an arena that's would be big for Pittsburgh's Economic Impact greatly.

BlackNGold203

02-19-2006, 08:06 AM

Building a new arena is a must...for many reasons....

Too many people think of this as a "Penguins only" thing....thats wrong...

Did you know the NCAA tournament announced it will not come back to Pittsburgh because of the arena?

Do you know that many of the biggest music artists in the world will no longer book Pittsburgh because of the arena?

The arena is 45 years old..and needs replaced...the Pens play there 42 nights a year...but there are hundreds of other events held there...and its a representation of the city...a new arena would do more for the city of Pittsburgh than Heinz field or PNC park ever will.

That being said...hockey has priced its self way out of this universe...I remember getting good seats to Pens games for 15-17 bucks..those seats now run 50-70 bucks. PNC park is unbelievable..and still somewhat affordable. Whether the Buccos stink or not..a summer evening at PNC Park is extremely enjoyable.

yes..we can support 3 teams..we've proven it....

SteelCityMan786

02-19-2006, 10:47 AM

And Hey If We still can and the Arena Deal Gets Done, you think Arena Football would be on the way to Pittsburgh. It would be a great way to keep up the Steelers/Eagles Rivalry in the Offseason. And It would also help feed our football fix during the Steelers Offseason

SteelerDan43

02-19-2006, 11:17 AM

I would like to see an AFL team for the offseason... The old Pittsburgh Gladiators who are now the Tampa Bay Storm are the winningest team in the history of the AFL

BlackNGold203

02-19-2006, 11:40 AM

I would definitely follow an AFL team..that would be awesome...and you know they would sell out

SteelerDan43

02-19-2006, 11:48 AM

It would be interesting to see the AFL in person, you only occasionally see a game on NBC. The whole system of a Jack and Mac LB and how they are allowed to blitz, the ways the D-lineman are allowed to rush would be intesting to see. Also the stuff like motion at the snap, plays off the net and no punting would be cool to watch...

SteelCityMan786

02-19-2006, 02:53 PM

I got to see an AFL game in Orlando And they are effin good. It's like you went to a sports bar and then some explosion then a football game breaks out. I'd see this city perfect fit for the Arena Football League. State Gaming Commission GIVE US THE LICENSE!

SteelerDan43

02-19-2006, 03:26 PM

There is a game on right now on OLN for your Daytona 500 commerical breaks